A nozzle arrangement is provided which utilizes a series of actuators to produce an iris motion effect thereby causing the ejection of ink from a nozzle chamber. The effect is produced by a series of vanes actuated by thermal actuators arranged around an ink ejection port. The vanes pressurize the volume around the ink ejection port thereby causing the ejection of ink. The thermal actuators, each has an expanding, flexible arm, and a rigid arm. The flexible arms include a conductive heater material encased within an expansion material such as polytetrafluoroethylene having a high coefficient of thermal expansion. The heater material is constructed so as to concertina upon expansion and can be of a serpentine form.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
1. An ink jet nozzle arrangement comprising: at least one nozzle chamber having an ink ejection port defined in one wall thereof; a plurality of vane units being adapted to be actuated by vane actuators and arranged around said ink ejection port, said vane units being adapted to be actuated by said vane actuators so as to pressurize the volume around said ink ejection port thereby causing the ejection of ink from said ink ejection port.
2. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said vane actuators comprise thermal actuators.
3. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 2 wherein each of said thermal actuators comprises an expanding, flexible arm, and a rigid arm.
4. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 3 wherein each flexible arm comprises a conductive heater material encased within an expansion material having a high coefficient of thermal expansion.
5. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 3 wherein said expansion material comprises substantially polytetrafluoroethylene.
6. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 4 wherein said conductive heater material is constructed so as to concertina upon expansion of said expansion material.
7. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 4 wherein said heater material is of a serpentine form and is concertinaed upon heating so as to allow substantially unhindered expansion of said expansion material during heating.
8. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 7 wherein said vane units operate as an iris around said ink ejection port.
9. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 4 wherein said conductive heater material comprises substantially copper.
10. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein said vane units are arranged circumferentially around said ink ejection port.
11. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein the vane units are of a part-circular form.
12. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein four vane units are arranged around said ink ejection port.
13. An ink jet nozzle arrangement as claimed in claim 1 wherein an outer surface of said nozzle chamber includes a plurality of etchant holes defined in said one wall of the nozzle chamber to facilitate rapid etching of sacrificial layers during construction.
Cooperative Patent Classification codes for this invention. Click any code to explore related patents in that topic.
July 10, 1998
September 4, 2001
Browse 5M+ US patents with plain-English claim translations and AI-generated analysis.